Bruce Springsteen performs onstage during the 72nd Annual Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall on June 10, 2018 in New York City.

After Billy Joel presented him with a special honor at the 2018 Tony Awards, Bruce Springsteen performed a stripped-down and deeply personal rendition of "My Hometown" that gave viewers a glimpse of what makes his one-man show, Springsteen on Broadway, such a singular achievement.

After a warm introduction from Robert De Niro ("Do you have any idea how hard it is to get tickets for Bruce Springsteen's show on Broadway?!"), Springsteen strode over to the piano and began reciting childhood memories of his home on Randolph Street in Freehold, New Jersey.

He played softly as he reminisced, speaking of growing up "surrounded by God and all my relatives" near St. Rose's Cemetery, where people did the best they could to "hold off the demons, outside and inside, that sought to destroy them." His spoken word gave way to lyrics from "My Hometown," the Born in the U.S.A. track that ruminates on the places most familiar to us -- and why we feel compelled to leave them.

Springsteen was nominated for a special Tony for his Broadway turn, which kicked off at New York’s Walter Kerr Theatre on October 3, 2017. Springsteen on Broadway's was set for a limited run, with the initial eight-week stretch extending to over a year of performances and grossing over $55 million to date, making it the runaway hit of Broadway’s 2017-2018 season.

Springsteen on Broadway is currently scheduled to wrap in December 2018.